As you may know , this blog is always ‘repping it’ for South London. When I discovered this music video from a few years ago, I kicked myself for not finding it sooner, and immediately drove around Peckham in by Fiesta pumping it out and feeling very cool. And then I realized that I’m actually from Bath and in my adopted hometown a Fiesta is not very cool. Neither is playing music three years out of date.

But seriously, this video is hilarious. I think. I still can’t decide how seriously grime artists take themselves. But it’s much funnier if you watch it believing they are taking themselves completely seriously.

Just in case y’all didn’t know, ska can kill you. Serious. And this isn’t even comparable to some half-baked urban myth lionising a Gabba raver who was so ‘into it’ that he simply dropped dead when the sunlight came up and the incessant pounding stopped. That was too many drugs. Ska can kill anyone, regardless of what may or may not be pervading their bloodstream. Like a musical Dirty Harry, it has no mercy. Forget swine flu, this is the real pandemic. And if you don’t believe me, here is the testimony of a man so eager to reveal Jamaica’s deadliest weapon that he risks a manslaughter charge at best; Skatalites double-bass player Lloyd Brevett ……

Not scared yet? You should be. But for those foolhardy types who like to stare danger in the face and insult her mother, here is the newly-reformed Skatalites playing Live at Reggae Sunsplash in 1983. If I don’t hear anything, I’ll assume Brevett’s hypothesis was right and his double-bass ‘heartbeat’ has ‘taken you out’ too………

Public awareness of the disease AIDS beginning around mid-1981 caused problems for the Ayds brand due to the phonetic similarity of names. Initially sales were not affected, but by 1988, sales had dropped by as much as 50% and the company was seeking a new name. The product’s name was changed to Diet Ayds (Aydslim in Britain), but eventually it was withdrawn from the market.

On Saturday I went to go and visit Felix’s machines at the Gasworks in Vauxhall.

Felix creates futuristic automatons from pieces of instruments and other material. They play his own compositions, which are somewhere close to a cross between Yann Tiersen and some of Aphex Twin’s more ambient work. Rumour has it he will be taking his machines on tour with the mighty dance bass playing maestro Squarepusher very soon so it’s worth getting down there before it shuts on January 18th [and as a bonus it is free!].

Here is a rather crudely shot video so you can grasp the concept a little better..

At the opening night of the exhibition, Leila [signed last year to Warp Records] played a DJ set.. I’ve got to draw attention to just how good her album ‘Blood, Looms and blooms’ really is. You can buy it here.

It also brings a realisation of how strong an influence Iran is having upon popular culture in recent times. Two of my closest friends are half Iranian and I can name at least three more people in my friendship group who have Iranian heritage. Early this morning I finished reading the brilliant graphic novel Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi.